Risk Management, Safety Issues and How
       WPI Meets the Inter-organizational Task
       Force Good Practices for Health and Safety
          By Natalie A. Mello

Introduction

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) has long embraced a project-based curriculum that now extends to the four corners of the globe.  With established programs in Europe, the Far East, Latin America, Australia, the US and new initiatives Hong Kong and Taiwan, WPI provides opportunities for undergraduates to complete meaningful off-campus experiences.  WPI offers students the freedom to complete degree requirements away from campus in a professional experience under the direct supervision of WPI faculty, an experience that is unrivaled by traditional international study abroad.  The impact of successfully completing professional-level projects at remote locations is that students solve real-world problems while immersed in a different culture. In 2004, 70% WPI's graduating class of 560 students completed a project off-campus on externally sponsored topics. We anticipate these numbers increasing as more opportunities for project work abroad are added every year.  WPI's program is not a traditional study-abroad program.^{1, 2}   Managing risk and overseeing the health and safety issues associated with sending so many students off-campus has become a priority for WPI. This article will provide an understanding of the risk management as implemented by WPI and how we address the fifteen Good Practices for Health and Safety as adopted by NAFSA ³.

WPI’s Global Perspective Program Enrollment

In 1976, the first WPI residential Project Center was established in Washington, DC.  The Project Center model involves groups of students working off-campus full-time on degree-required projects for a period of one eight-week term.  The students are accompanied by WPI faculty advisors, and develop solutions to problems proposed by agencies and organizations at the site.  Since that time, this program has expanded to include operations in London, Venice, Bangkok, Boston, San Juan (Puerto Rico), San José (Costa Rica), Hong Kong, Melbourne, Limerick, Windhoek (Namibia) and Copenhagen.

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Roles and Responsibilities of Project Center Personnel

In order to understand the context of WPI’s program and how the risk associated with it is managed, it is important to understand the context.  WPI has several levels of participation in the project centers that contribute to its success.  Each project center has a full time faculty member associated with it referred to as a center director.  This center director oversees the pedagogical concerns associated with projects, selects the student participants for their site and works with the local coordinator.  The local coordinator is a resident of the site who maintains contact with project sponsors, helps to arrange housing and serves as a resident expert for the students and faculty for the site.  There are full-time WPI faculty members who go with the students for the duration of the project experience who are referred to as the resident advisors.  These resident advisors prepare with the students for the term before they depart for the site, live on site with the students and advise the projects.

In addition to the roles described above, the Interdisciplinary and Global Studies Division (IGSD) through which these residential project experiences are managed also employs administrators.  The leadership team for this Division is comprised of four individuals who separately oversee different components of the off-campus experience and who together decide policy and procedures that affect all participants – students, Resident Faculty Advisors, Center Directors and Local Coordinators.  There are also several support staff members who facilitate all of the details involved in administering such a large program.

Risk Management Team Responsibilities 

As the numbers of students going off campus began to increase, it became obvious that the division sponsoring this academic activity could not work in a vacuum to address risk management.  It only took one perceived crisis in the making to bring the right players together to form the team that worries about the risk associated with sending students away to complete projects.  This team is made of the Director of Global Operations in the Interdisciplinary and Global Studies Division, the Associate Treasurer for the university, the Risk Manager for the university and  an insurance and liability consultant hired by the university.  As necessary, legal counsel is sought although an attorney does not attend all the meetings of the team.  It is important for each institution to determine who the appropriate players are on this risk management team.  At a larger university, the size of the team may have to be much bigger. 

WPI believes that effective risk management is a combination of two methodologies.  The philosophical approach aims to identify, analyze, and manage risks, while WPI tailors a practical approach to each site.  The ultimate goal of this combination is to protect the students, the advisors, the program and the institution. 

Part of the process of working towards managing the risks the WPI risk management team saw the institution being exposed to was defining what “risk management,” meant to the University. Each school must tackle this as a first step towards managing any risks perceived.  The risk management team identified various exposures and measured them against WPI’s willingness and ability to withstand potential losses resulting from those exposures.  The risk management team then determined how to implement policies to best control these identified risks with appropriate procedures. These site-specific policies and procedures are reviewed each year. 

WPI conducts a continuous assessment of conditions for each location that students go to.  The Director of Global Operations, who works closely with the local coordinators and the center directors, initiates this assessment.  Center directors have first hand, ongoing, historically based experience at each site.  The local coordinators live at the sites and truly provide a continuous expertise that is necessary to manage the risk associated with WPI’s Global Perspective Program.  This group works to monitor any unusual developments of political unrest, outbreaks of disease or perceived risks. 
 

Safety issues are reviewed for every site on a regular basis, including transportation at each site, and housing accommodations. The Director of Global Operations and her staff routinely review current information provided by the Center for Disease Control, the US State Department, and other SAFETI resources.  This group also works closely with the risk management team when needed to determine if policies should be developed regarding certain activities.  For instance, this year it was decided that due to the travel warnings issued by the State Department regarding danger to American travelers in the area abutting Thailand, a policy was put in place to prohibit travel in Laos. 
 

Use of technological tools

Recent technological developments have made planning and communication much easier today.  Students and families are used to having instant contact with each other and with their home institution through the use of Web pages, cell phones, email and other communication tools.  WPI uses these tools to our advantage to meet basic communication needs  and in maintaining emergency contact lists, records of itineraries and medical files.

A.  Cell phones

WPI provides cell phones to their off-campus program participants.  This is a relatively inexpensive and reliable means of communication – and it assures that all students at least begin with the ability to keep in touch.  If a program employs advisors or directors on site, implementing the use of local cell phones should be relatively easy.  In many areas of the world it is common for locals to use cell phones and the purchase of calling cards or SIM cards specifically designed for cell phone use is quite straightforward and inexpensive.  Requiring students to carry cell phones guarantees that families and administrators can contact participants in the event of an emergency.  It also guarantees that a student or advisor will have a ready way to access local authorities, institutional resources and families in the case of an emergency. 

The downside of acquiring phones once at a site includes these considerations:  Students will have the phones only upon arrival at their final destination; the program will not have the phone numbers ahead of time; or students may choose not to acquire the phone.  For these reasons, WPI decided to provide participants with phones before they leave our home campus.

The advantages to requiring students to carry (home institution provided) cell phones are many.  The university was able to take advantage of volume purchasing to guarantee affordable rates.  Program administrators have the phone numbers before the students leave campus.  These numbers are entered into various emergency lists and shared with those who may need to contact the students in an emergency.  Students are accessible during travel before their program begins – and even afterward – and they’ll have a way to make emergency calls during this extra-curricular travel as well.  WPI’s cell phone policy and protocol that has been implemented successfully, can be found at http://www.wpi.edu/Academics/Depts/IGSD/Students/cellprotocol.html

B.  Hand-held tools

Another invaluable tool is the hand-held computer with lots of storage capacity.  It is easier to carry around one hand-held device than folders of paper records.  Catastrophes do not limit themselves to our business hours and having student records and databases reliably available is important.  With a battery operated hand-held device, one does not have to rely upon having electric power, working phone lines, or access to a computer or the internet.

Risk Management Resources for Students 

There are two major resources that have been developed by WPI in the effort to protect our students, the advisors, the program and the institution.  The first is intended for student use, the second was designed for use by the faculty advisors at a site.  Both resources have been in existence for about 3 years now, and have grown substantially with time.  These resources actually began as a pile of handouts that typically had been given to participants with the directive to share them with their parents.  As the piles of information grew and the possibility for overlooking something became evident, the decision was made to bind these handouts together with an explanation of what they were.  It also was determined that this would be excellent information to share with participants’ families, rather than relying on students to pass on what they thought they understood.  Such were the humble beginnings of the “Going Global at WPI Handbook” and the “Going Global at WPI Operational Handbook.” 

The “Going Global at WPI Handbook,” intended for students and their families, includes descriptions of all institutional policies, all paperwork that students are expected to complete, and site specific information from reliable sources.  This Handbook is sent to families with a cover letter, and is given to all students at orientation.  IGSD professional staff prepares the Handbook with input from center directors and local coordinators for site-specific information.  It also includes the NAFSA good practices ³ as it is important for all involved to know what the responsibilities of each are.  Resources from governmental agencies that are provided in the Handbook include all updated information from the Center for Disease Control for their site and fact sheets from US State Department specific to where the students are going. 

Travel information that is provided includes how to get a passport and what needs to be considered regarding visas.  Because most of our students have not traveled extensively, we provide information regarding safety when traveling, how to take money and how to safeguard important documents.  Each Handbook contains contact information for the nearest US embassy or consulate information.  Important information regarding drugs and the legal system and how it may differ from here in the US is also given. 

Medical considerations that we want students to keep in mind include information about how to carry prescription medication and the addresses, phone numbers and directions to nearest, best medical, dental, and mental health facilities.  With the help of the Local Coordinators the Handbook provides local emergency phone numbers with explicit instructions as to what to say in the local language in case of an emergency.  In this Handbook local phone numbers for the local coordinator, the faculty advisor in residence, and any other important contact information is provided.  Maps of the area are also included in the Handbook. 

All students participating in the Global Perspective Program are provided with the International Student Identity Card (ISIC).  The benefits of this supplemental insurance are outlined in the Handbook.  Because the Commonwealth of Massachusetts requires fulltime undergraduate students to have health insurance, the IGSD does not have to verify this information.  On the Updated Health Form students provide insurance carrier names and policy numbers as part of the paperwork required.  This form also asks for updated health related information, a list of allergies, prescription medications and emergency contact information.  Students retain the responsibility for contacting their insurance company to determine that they are covered while off campus.  If the insurance company requires a letter from the school, the IGSD is happy to provide that documentation. 

Other mandatory paperwork that students must submit to the IGSD before leaving for their site includes a Travel Form with an itinerary and copy of passport (if an international site).  WPI also requires students to sign a Voluntary Acknowledgement Form  - which is somewhat of a misnomer, as it is not voluntary that the students sign this form.  Rather it acknowledges that the students are participating in the program voluntarily and that they have received written information and an orientation specific to their site.  By signing this form students are also acknowledging that all of the support services that are available to them on campus may not be as accessible when off-campus.  However, it is important to note that contact information with names, phone numbers, fax numbers and email addresses for all of these support offices is provided as part of the Handbook, including the Student Development Center, Accounting, Financial Aid, Residential Services, etc. 

As explained in the Handbook and at the orientation, failure to turn in mandatory paperwork by the deadline specified in the Handbook can result in students not participating in the program.  As part of a conscientious risk management effort copies of all the paperwork are sent with the faculty advisors to the site and are originals are kept in the IGSD.  In the case of a lost or stolen passport, a medical emergency, or a missed connection in transit, the faculty advisors have all of the necessary information with them to facilitate a quick response when needed. 

Policies regarding use of WPI owned equipment, the WPI Code of Conduct and the Hearing Procedure at Off-Campus Residential Program Sites that apply to every participant at every site are supplied in the Handbook.  Any policies that are site specific are included in the appropriate Handbook and reviewed.  Examples of these sorts of policies include transportation and car rental by faculty and students, and known high-risk activities such as white water rafting.  

Student Preparation 

Students who wish to complete a project off campus must complete a rigorous, multi-step application process.  Part of the application is a release that every applicant signs allowing access to academic and judicial records.  The Director of Academic Advising and the Dean of Students review all transcripts and judicial records.  Students must be in good academic and judicial standing at the time of application.  This is an important screening that begins early in the process and these records are monitored up until the time the students leave for a site.  Students are not allowed to participate if they are not in good academic standing or if they have had documented behavioral problems. 

Every student who has been accepted to participate in an off-campus experience is given information regarding accommodations for disability related challenges.  It is the student’s responsibility to request special accommodations and to provide the necessary documentation needed to fulfill the request.  WPI reserves the right to reassign a student with special needs to a project site that will better accommodate their needs.  For instance, a student confined to a wheelchair who wants to complete a project in Venice will be redirected to the Project Center in Washington DC or London. 

Each student, before they leave campus, is prepared in a variety of ways to deal with the experience ahead of them.  Completion of preparation activity specific to each project is required for every student participant.  In most cases the equivalent of a course and a half of activity is required before a student team is allowed to proceed with their project off-campus.   

Each project, regardless of its area of focus, calls upon students to develop specific skills.  As students work with broad problem statements and develop specific goals for their project, they are actively engaged in open-ended problem solving.  Typically project topics are outside the scope of the students’ areas of study, and therefore the students must learn how to learn about new subjects.  Teamwork skills are honed and practiced throughout the experience as students work together to produce a solution.  The formal documentation and presentation skills required to successfully complete an academic project off-campus insure that students master how to communicate in a variety of mediums and for a variety of audiences. 

In addition to the academic preparation that students participate in, they are also given orientation and preparation for the cultural, religious and ethnic differences they may encounter off-campus.  This may include specific language training, depending on the site.  Faculty members with expertise in the area provide a general history of the site where the students are going.  Students are instructed as to proper dress, proper etiquette, and how to expect the host country nationals to treat them.

Student Orientation Sessions 

Students are also provided with an orientation session run by the professional staff of the IGSD.  The “Going Global Handbook” is given to the students at this session and reviewed.  All mandatory paperwork is explained and deadlines are emphasized.  Students are told that failure to submit any paperwork by the deadline will prohibit their participation in the program.   

The professional staff covers in detail issues of health, safety, medical insurance, alcohol and drug use, WPI policies and how they are enforced while off campus, and also policies that are specific to the program that the students are preparing to participate in.  To reinforce the seriousness of the issues discussed, WPI students view a video ¹⁰ produced specifically to cover these issues for students participating in study abroad. 

While participants are off-campus they still have access through email, telephone, and fax to all support resources on the WPI campus as described previously.   Students are also given laminated wallet cards with contact numbers (office, home and cellular) for the leadership team of the IGSD in case of an emergency. The WPI risk management team is confident that by providing written material to the students and their families along with a review of all the material, policies, and issues that all participants are as prepared as possible before they leave campus. 

Risk Management Resources for Resident Advisors 

The “Going Global at WPI Operational Handbook” is a resource that is provided to all Resident Faculty Advisors who are on-site with the students.  In addition to all of the information described above included in the students’ Handbook, the faculty are provided with more information that they may need while in residence.  Included is the Crisis Management Plan that contains a detailed description of what to do and who to contact in the event of an emergency.  Emergencies that are anticipated include such events as natural disasters, crimes that may be committed against a student, crimes that may be committed by a student, a student’s disappearance, sexual harassment, and violations of the WPI’s Code of Conduct.  Faculty advisors are provided with an extensive list of names and contact numbers for the WPI Crisis Management Team on campus.   

Resident Advisor Training and Preparation 

Each year, faculty members are chosen from across the campus to participate as residential project advisors at the sites.  These advisors travel with the students and reside on site during the entire experience.  Responsibilities of the advisors include not only the typical academic issues that arise, but also issues that arise due to living on site and off-campus.  Because there are special issues that arise from being away from campus for all participants – students and faculty alike – training has been developed specifically for advisors at off-campus locations.  A conscientious approach to risk management has necessitated preparing advisors for worst-case scenarios, while also providing the less experienced off-campus advisors with an opportunity to learn from their colleagues who have been away often.  Areas of concern that are addressed during these training sessions include: sexual harassment, transportation, drugs and alcohol, recognizing and responding to students at risk, health and safety issues, housing concerns, students’ behavior, social and personal growth, and helping students get the most of the cultural experience.  All of these areas are deemed to be out of the purview of regular project advising and therefore get special attention.  Professionals who offer services addressing these issues on campus help design and facilitate the training sessions to offer expert advice about how to deal with the issues off-campus.  This training goes beyond that information provided in the “Going Global at WPI Operational Handbook”. 

Conclusion 

The Global Perspective Program at WPI provides a model for international education that incorporates a meaningful global experience for our students.  At WPI careful risk management in conjunction with student selection, preparation, and faculty training support these efforts. Rapid growth of the program provides evidence that WPI students understand the value of this type of international experience.  The fact that with this increase of participation there have been no catastrophic incidents speaks to the success of the management of these experiences by those involved at WPI.  However, it is important to note that developing all of the aspects of the risk management effort did not just appear suddenly.  WPI has managed to get to this stage of risk management by persistent efforts of the administrators and professionals involved with the Global Perspective Program over time.  The following matrix illustrates how each of the guidelines developed by NAFSA ³ are addressed by the procedures implemented at WPI.  Each guideline is addressed in at least two ways by WPI. [Editor's note: the following table only contains a portion of the full matrix. To view the full version, please click here].

Please click here to view the full version of this table.

As anyone familiar with an academic environment knows, policy implementation can be a very slow and arduous process.  However in the interest of protecting students, faculty, the program and ultimately WPI, the risk management team realized that conscientious risk management is crucial to the success of any off campus academic experience, be it abroad or here in the United States.

References

Mello, N.A., How Can Universities Provide a Global Perspective for Engineers?  One Institution’s Solution, ASEE Annual Conference Proceedings, St. Louis, MO, June 2000. 

Vaz, R., Connected Learning: Interdisciplinary Projects in International Settings.  Liberal Education, AAC&U, Vol. 86, No. 1. Winter 2000. 

NAFSA, Responsible Study Abroad: Good Practices for Health and Safety , November 8, 2002 http://www.secussa.nafsa.org/safetyabroad/goodpractices2003.html 

Studying the Risks, The Detroit News Cyber Surveys, wysiwig://1/http://data.detnews.com/feedback/surveyletters.hbs

Rubin, K., Safety in Study Abroad: How much more can programs do to protect students?  Promoting Safety in Study Abroad, NAFSA, 1998   http://www.nafsa.org/safetyabroad/rubin.html 

Kast, R.C., In Loco Parentis and the “Reasonable Person”, International Educator, Vol. VII, No. 1. NAFSA, 1997. 

French, R. Gauging Danger a Difficult Task: Statistics Not Kept; Colleges Have Few Rules, The Detroit News, 8/28/00  http://www.detnews.com/specialreport/costarica/mondanger/mondanger.html 

SAFETI (Safety Abroad First - Educational Travel Information) Clearinghouse Project, On-Line Newsletter, University of Southern California Center for Global Education, 2001. http://www.usc.edu/dept/education/globaled/safeti/

Congressional Hearing Subject: Safety in Study Abroad Programs. Committee: Education and the Workforce.  Subcommittee: Oversight and Investigations October 4, 2000. 

Darrah, M., Safety and Study Abroad, International Film & Video, Portland, OR., 2003.  www.iFilmVidoe.com

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